Cincinnati is located on the boarder of Ohio and Kentucky in the Midwest of America. Its famous for its chili, which is sauce like and eaten with spaghetti – don’t knock it because it’s bloody good, but mostly because they take it very seriously! The city has a great library system, was briefly home to Mark Twain, and has a fantastic brewery scene and is fittingly home to a new Tough Buy Book Club (TGBC) chapter. TGBC is a network of men’s book clubs held pubs around the world, committed to putting decent conversation back in the pub and getting men reading books that lead to rowdy discussions.

Guy Wilkin is the president and founder of the Cincinnati chapter of TGBC. The journey began with a google search for ‘men’s book clubs.’ “There are a lot of book clubs in the city,” said Guy when asked why he started a chapter. “But the type of books and general vibe of them didn’t appeal to me.” After some online research of TGBC of the website and Pool Hall Facebook page, Guy reckoned he found the club he was looking for, and that there was a place for it in his community. “It appealed to me, so I was sure there must be others that would be into it too,” Guy said. It can be a daunting experience starting up a chapter. On the first night it was Guy and one other bloke, who found the Facebook event. “He hadn’t read the book, so we chatted about TGBC, and I told him about the book, so all in all it was a success.” We think so too! Some chapters start out with a single goon in attendance for a month or two, so Cincinnati was ahead of that from the start and now, only five meeting later, they are up to 6 in attendance and growing.

And it hasn’t all been confined to club nights, the Cincinnati chapter has already organized events outside of the first Wednesday of the month, which is bloody great to see. It makes for a tighter crew. In January all chapters were tasked with organising a social event, like a BBQ or picnic. With temps getting into the brass monkey territory of 20F (-7C), they decided a trip to Krohn Conservatory, an indoor botanical garden, would be a wise option – with a venture around tropical and desert environments. Four goons showed up and two brought their wives, ending the day in a brewery with an awesome vibe for a beer and chat. Challenges have also been enthusiastically embraced. “Me and another goon planted a tree together which was cool. I checked my blood sugar, and it was a little high but not concerning. In general, I need to be more proactive about my health at my age. Things are going to start falling apart quicker if I don't stay on top of them.” said Guy. “I'm going for the challenge coin this year (2024). I may not succeed but I'm going to try!”

So, what about the pub? When choosing a venue Guy looked for a convenient location, reasonable prices, locally owned, and somewhere with a laid-back vibe. This was all found at the Three Spirits Tavern. They have beer, wine, bourbon, and food, and the tables are great for conversation - you are sitting in a space that used to be the living room of a house that was built in the 1880s. The woodwork gives a cozy vibe for the colder months, and there is an outdoor patio (beer garden in metric) for the warmer months. Sounds fucking perfect! If you are in the Cincinnati area and looking to join some good blokes for some boisterous discussion – come along to the Three Spirits Tavern on the first Wednesday of the month, there is room for you at the table.

It all starts with Shakespeare. Or possibly a guy named Dave.

Let's clarify. While it is true that a lot of the western English-speaking literary canon can be traced back to a playwright from Stra

tford-Upon-Avon who had a funny moustache and couldn't spell his name, we're not talking about him. We're actually referring to a pub called the Shakespeare, which for almost ten glorious years was the sole Sydney home of Tough Guy Book Club.

And Dave is Dave Michell. He doesn't have a funny moustache, but we're not sure about the name-spelling thing. At this point it would be weird to ask.

Dave joined TGBC in March 2018, rocking up to the Melbourne City meeting to talk Sherlock Holmes. When Melbourne grew too big and had to split he joined the breakaway contingent across the river in Southbank. When work moved him interstate to New South Wales he wasn't about to abandon his book club, but he couldn't figure out why the whole of Sydney drained into a single upstairs room at the Shakespeare Hotel. As nice as it was.

"Moving around [chapters] is a great experience, you get to see the many different ways that the club can discuss the same books," he says, "Every goon brings their own life experience, so you always get a different discussion."

As soon as Dave arrived in Sydney, the Petersham (now Newtown) Chapter was born. Then, because the hip craft-beer-swilling inner west wasn't enough of a challenge, Dave set his sights across the big coathangar-looking bridge towards the skyscrapers, designer shops and shockingly expensive houses on the north side of the harbour.

"It can be a bit daunting at first, because you're not sure what the new chapter is going to be like, and you're not sure if people are going to show up!"

But show up they did. Chatswood is a major transit hub and business district, so not only is it convenient, there are plenty of new recru

its over there desperate to talk about anything other than work. As Dave and others have learned, chapter-jumping is a great way to taste different flavours of conversation and meet new faces. And as for starting new chapters - all it takes is enough dudes with open minds, kind spirits, and the optimism and determination to hit the road with a merry new band of characters. William Shakespeare would have made a decent goon, come to think of it.

"Especially after you attend TGBC camp," says Dave, "You realise that everyone is accepting of new people. They've all passed rule number two already."

What's rule number two? All together now, sing it with us:

DON'T.

BE.

A.

FUCKHEAD.

Dave Michell is not a fuckhead. He's just a guy who runs a mean barbecue (whether for our fundraisers or for himself), who has read 57 new books in the last 5 years (and failed to finish 6), and whose efforts have given lots of other like-minded men a chance to do the same. If you want to verify this for yourself, come along to the Chatswood meeting and say hello, or join our online discussion group and check out his can't fail crowd pleasing recipe for double-smoked creamy bacon spuds. If you can't follow that link yet, you'll need to buzz our admins and prove you can follow rule number two.

Be like Dave. And keep reading. We'll see you soon.